The Rock reveals to Oprah Winfrey the turning point of his WWE career
The Rock sat down with Oprah Winfrey to discuss the recent passing of his father, his career, dealing with success and a specific turning point that changed his life in WWE.
The Rock revealed that when he wrestled The Sultan (Rikishi) at WrestleMania 13 and the crowd booed him, he knew something had to change.
The Rock recalled that he debuted in WWE as Rocky Maivia, a name that was given to him by WWE officials to honor his lineage.
The Rock hated the name but went along with it. He debuted to much fanfare but his initial babyface run was a disaster. He said his match at WrestleMania 13 marked the turning point as he knew things had to change.
He said:
"When I was in the ring and I was supposed to be a good guy and they're supposed to cheer me, 16,000 people were chanting, 'Rocky Sucks.' I remember laying there in the middle of the ring and the referee said to me, 'Don't listem to them' and it was crippling for me.'
The segment starts at 23:00 in the video below.
The Rock then talked about the time when he turned heel and most WWE fans will probably remember, he gave one of the most defining promos of his career, which got everything started and the rest is history!
The Rock did mention that the moral of the story is the importance and power of finding one's identity and being true to who you are. Wrestling fans would probably agree that this moment was when The Rock truly arrived.